The Divine and The Astral

In February, I wrote an article on Astral vs Divine. The divine I’m referring to here is the expressed divine rather than pure divinity, a much deeper layer beyond polarity.

I’m raising the topic again as this confusion continues. As group consciousness rises, the veils that separate these layers have fallen away. Far more people have noticed these values but often not very skillfully or very consciously.

This doesn’t mean seeing things necessarily. Rather becoming more conscious or at least semi-conscious of “energies” and “influences”.

While it is common for such things to become conscious on a spiritual path due to refinement of perception, practitioners in a tradition will have some training in these matters and know to avoid the traps. Or at least the instruction to avoid it altogether.

If you notice subtle beings or power or influence and you’re not ALSO aware of much deeper values, then what you’re aware of is astral – aka emotional and mental. This is the realm of dreams and illusions. It is the range that Eckhart Tolle refers to as the “pain body” because it’s where we store our unresolved experiences. These drive our noisy minds, reactive emotions, and less desirable actions. Giving power to that before we house-clean is not a great idea.

Many people have become addicted to “the subtle” as it can be more enticing than modern day-to-day living. They live more in the mind and emotions than in the world. This has been true to a degree for years – many a child lives in their imagination, for example.

But the hazards are greater now. Rising group consciousness is also leading to a descent of the divine. As this progresses, the astral entities who are not working with nature (without a function) have lost a lot of their territory. This has led to them taking an interest in human life and getting involved. (of course, the dynamics are vastly more complex than this)

This is not a scenario where the shadow is rising. Rather, as the light gets brighter, the shadows become darker and more defined. More conscious we could say.

Because the astral is dream-space, entities can appear however they wish. If we’re looking for saints or angels, they’ll appear how we expect them.

I’ve seen people in advanced stages of development in consciousness stumble over this one. When subtle awareness dawns, there are ample beings around seeking attention and happy to manipulate us for their own ends. Want to have a relationship with an ancient master? Your wish is their command. Only it’s all just special effects on this level.

If there is sufficient refinement of perception, we’ll be aware of both the divine and the astral. Then the differences are blatantly obvious. But without that experiential way to discriminate, we can be easy prey.

How does it feel? What are they appealing to? Our vanity? Our unresolved needs? The divine doesn’t manipulate or take over. They respect free will. The don’t appeal to the ego or our desires for control.

People in positions of fame or influence are apparently common targets, including actors, politicians and spiritual teachers.

But you have to buy into it. You have to click on the Yes button, so to speak. Like those nasty web sites, the offer may be wrapped up in an illusion of help, healing or wisdom. The carrots on offer may include greater power, charisma, ability, and so forth. Things that appeal to the ego like specialness or control.

However, they actually give you nothing. You give up some self-authority so they can take over. We give up our power so we can gain the appearance of more power? A fools game. A Faustian deal.

These are not powerful entities. However, for a major target, they work in “teams” to consolidate and give that appearance.

I’ve come into contact with people in extreme addiction who’s lives are run by such entities. In obvious cases, their lives have become seriously constrained. They rarely leave the house or have social contact. But Rose Rosetree talks about players on the world stage in a similar place. The US Presidential election apparently has very public examples, a hidden dynamic that is influencing votes.

The battle to take back control can be devastating. It can require a serious intervention. But ultimately it’s just an energy problem so can be healed.

Yet healing does not absolve our responsibility. It can be difficult karma if we lead people astray.

Rose has indicated the crisis may have peaked. The presence of the divine is certainly rising.

This is not to demonize the astral. There are many perfectly safe astral beings like guides and nature spirits. It’s perfectly safe to have dreams and emotions. But unless you have a decent range of experience and understanding, playing in the astral can be rather fraught in the current time. I struggled with it myself back in the day and then took a more circumspect approach. The challenge is deeper today.

Best to live your human life as best you can and stay out of the mud. The resulting rewards when we clean house and get past the astral are well worth it.
Davidya

18 Responses to The Divine and The Astral

There is an embassy of the divine at earths very core. I went there out of curiosity as I had never tried going down as far as I can with an OBE (the journey was far but I will skip to the end) I could hear music… I felt like I was watching some kind of adult dark version of the Simpsons. There was musical style singing with the music about the characters, I don’t remember much of the song but “Maggie is a hooker” stood out in the text. I went through the musical cartoon world and found my self floating in the air… That´s when I came up to a McDonalds like structure. I heard a voice say “Can you take this one Mark?” as I floated over to the counter. The ragtag man called Mark came up to me, took hold of my hand very decisively, just so firm that it did not start to hurt if kept my position still and he looked me right in the eye… My reaction was of a child realizing it had been somewhere it should not be and got caught by an adult. I said “I´m sorry! I did not mean!…” He interrupts me with a loving “We know” and the world starts moving around us at incredible accelerating speed, up up up I can see how Mark is morphing as rapidly as the world around us is moving. As we reach our destination and the morphing is no more, Mark the ragtag man has turned in to a radiant mother like woman in white. The Darkness of traveling down deep in to the earth has been replaced with spacious light. She lets go of my hand… I wake up in my bed…

Words are tricky if the divine is not yet part of the experience. The “astral” as a generic region is layered itself so that can be confused with still higher.

But broadly, astral is the mental and emotional layers and where we go when dreaming. If the experience has those qualities, it’s astral. Also, the astral has more in common with our usual experience – waking and dreams. And there are beings with various kinds of motivation and you have to be street-smart. Polarity/duality.

The Divine is bliss and higher. So it’s light-based, no mind-games, they respond to your universal nature more than your ego, they all have defined roles and are focused on the whole. Oneness.

But of course, these are generalizations. The whole thing is vastly more complex than this.

I was not conveying an experience of something that has happened so much as a metaphorical expression. Nothing has ever happened in this point of view, there is only ever what is happening. Life is not a multitude of experiences, just one ongoing experience with phases of succession. Call it astral or divine, it´s all part of the same.

a little Poem I wrote a while back;

*Embracing the mystery*

An immediate habit of assuming that nothing is as it seems.

Then I will start observing and waking up within my dreams.

As I assume I know what is going on,
it´s a sure sign I´m looking with finite eyes,
rather than with an awareness that never dies.

As in totality.
Every assumes explanation creates a gibberish reality.
Potentially confused with factuality.
delusion of sanity.

When you think about it.
It´s a kind of self imposed distortion mistaken for clarity.

Relax, it´s all just an expression, apply meaning at your discretion, we all shine meaning like the sun, infusing this world with stories, where there is none. <3

David, could you please elaborate on this. Especially what you mean by the ‘deeper values’. Do you mean recognizing the natural laws your are perceiving in the personifications. Like their function. As in how Lakshmi’s nature and function differs from Kali.

“If you notice subtle beings or power or influence and you’re not ALSO aware of much deeper values, then what you’re aware of is astral”

Hi Gayanee
Big subject. Basically nature is structured in a massive hierarchy. What we experience as the physical world is structured largely by astral beings who are responsible to their supervisors, on up to the “royalty” who command all of that law on this planet.

Personalization relates to them living in dream-space and being able to appear as they wish/we expect.

The divine operates on universal layers and divine beings are largely omnipresent. (angels are kind of borderline)

Higher divine beings are more universal principles rather than specific laws. Parvati is the feminine expression of Shiva. (or vice versa) Kali embodies the destroyer aspect if that.

Lakshmi is the feminine sustainer, thus upholds dharma and evolution. Many focus on wealth giving here.

Together they are the tridevi or 3 aspects of Mother Divine aka paraprakriti.

Today is celebrated as Victory Day when Mother Divine defeated a great demon. It follows 9 days of celebrating the above 3 and their aspects.

Stepping back to the impersonal, these same aspects are known in consciousness as the Observer, the process of observing, and the objects of observation.

More typically, such beings show up when we’re ready and offer guidance. This is why it’s important to recognize where such guidance is coming from. There are far more examples of people getting guidance from self-motivated beings than the divine.

Here there’s no specific guidance but a sense of presence and gentle knowledge being revealed and that too from an impersonal aspect…

There was knowledge revealed that Lakshmi principle showing and becoming the red blood cells of circulatory system as the giver of oxygen while Saraswati in her pure white as white blood cells. It’s not all so clear yet.

So when Vishnu, brahma, shiva are the male aspect? I have so many other questions but having a hard time articulating them right now. I’m sure something more specific that I could communicate will come through soon.

Thanks for tackling a tough subject to write about, since comparing divine to astral, it is subtle world vs subtle world.:-)

I found the easiest way to tell the difference between the two, is to remain over time, lightly focused on the divine, beyond the polarity as you say. That way, the experiences can sort themselves out, and become familiar, with the higher energy gradually coming into view.

Also, the very experience of the divine is real, and often very much exceeding any expectations, with a correlation in the material world, and without trade offs. Openly given, with a depth far more profound than simply a few mental or emotional realizations. All encompassing, and enjoyable.

The astral on the other hand is darker, and better to just have a desire to find out more there, and it comes, rather than go consciously looking. After a look around a few times, anyone will agree that there is nothing worth exploring there. Because once the memory of divine experience exists, it is easy to prefer it over the astral.

All of this is exciting and new when it first happens. Then it becomes simply a part of life, like spontaneously growing night vision, with the divine growing more apparent, as it is naturally favored.